1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for inhibiting the formation of volatile aldehydes including their related compounds (hereinafter abbreviated as "volatile aldehydes", unless specified otherwise) and/or the decomposition of fatty acids including their related compounds (hereinafter abbreviated as "fatty acids", unless specified otherwise), and more particularly to a method for inhibiting the formation of volatile aldehydes and/or the decomposition of fatty acids, comprising a step of incorporating trehalose and/or maltitol into a product to be treated; compositions comprising fatty acids in which the formation of volatile aldehydes and/or the decomposition of fatty acids are inhibited; decomposition inhibitory agents for volatile aldehydes and/or the decomposition of fatty acids, which comprise trehalose and/or maltitol as an effective ingredient; and uses thereof.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known that fatty acids with a relatively-high purity scarcely smell and form their characteristic disagreeable deteriorated smells when irradiated with an ultraviolet ray, treated with heat, or allowed to stand in the air for a relatively-long period of time. For example, in the case of masking such a disagreeable smell of compositions comprising fatty acids such as fishery products and meats, there has long been employed a method for cooking the compositions using seasonings such as a Guinea pepper, Japanese horseradish, sansho, garlic, and ginger. The method, however, is not one for lowering the formation of a deteriorated smell of ingredients but for masking disagreeable smell by imparting thereto a strong stimulant taste or flavor, resulting in altering the original desirable flavor, taste, and color of the fatty acids as a demerit. Therefore, it has been required to improve the demerit. In the case of cleaned rice as another composition containing fatty acids, it is known that fatty acids are susceptible to deterioration in such a manner that, just after cleaning, a cleaned rice instantly loses its freshness to easily cause a smell of rice lees as a deteriorated smell. The level of such a smell is even considered as a criterion of freshness of cleaned rice or a standard of the stability of quality. Thus, an establishment of a method for inhibiting the smell of rice lees has been in a great demand.
Recently, a method has been used for inhibiting the to dispersion of deteriorated smells, to improve the aforesaid smell, using an inclusion action effected by cyclodextrins. However, disadvantageously, it is known that even excluding a deteriorated smell of ingredients is only temporary, because the once included ingredients are replaceable with other substances more susceptible to the inclusion action, resulting in an ineffective masking effect.